Q&A: Phoenix Criminal Defense – Search Warrants
Question: I’m a tribal police officer with a background in mobile forensic. We ave people transporting narcotics into the reservation. My question is if we arrest someone for transporting or possession with the intent to sell narcotics:
If I arrest a person for intent to distribute narcotics and he has a cell phone, can that cell phone be searched without warrant?
A. Can we seized the cell phone as evidence because, as a known fact, drug dealers use cell phone for their transaction and get a search warrant for that phone at a later time?
B. Can we do a search of that phone, using a mobile forensic device without a warrant on a search incident to arrest?
These questions does not include people who are in possession of narcotics. Only traffickers and dealers.
Rule of thumb – if you have time to ask, you have time to get a warrant. It’s always best to get a warrant ensure that you’ve upheld a defendant’s constitutional rights and avoid suppression issues. Your local prosecuting agency may be able to provide a more detailed answer regarding search and seizure issues such as this. It may be worth your time to give them a call. Best of luck to you.
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